The field of the invention is hockey pucks and the invention relates more particularly to hockey pucks of the type used on a non-ice surface. Such pucks are often referred to as roller hockey pucks and are typically made with six runners extending from the upper and lower surface of the puck. These runners are made from a material which has a lower co-efficient of friction against the playing surface than the material from which the body of the puck is made. Most commonly, the runners are fabricated from Nylon and are positioned near the outer periphery of the surfaces of the puck.
A basic patent showing a roller hockey puck with runners is U.S. Pat. No. 5,597,161. Since the game of roller hockey is intended to play as much like as ice hockey as possible, it is desirable that the roller hockey puck have a similar action when hitting the skating surface as does the conventional rubber ice hockey puck. Pucks with runners tend to bounce more when hitting a playing surface than does a conventional ice hockey puck when striking an ice surface. Also, on rough surfaces such as asphalt, the Nylon runners tend to cause the puck to bounce along the surface more than does an ice hockey puck on an ice surface.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a hockey puck of the type having runners which are somewhat shock absorbing in nature and, thus, bounces less than a conventional hockey puck with runners and also rides more smoothly along an asphalt or rough surface than does a conventional hockey puck with runners.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a puck and runner configuration which will reduce the contact between the puck body and the playing surface as the puck slides along the playing surface in a tilted orientation.
The present invention is for a hockey puck with a plurality of shock absorbing runners extending outwardly therefrom. The hockey puck has a hockey puck body with a generally cylindrical outer edge, an upper face, and a lower face. A plurality of shock absorbing runners are held by the puck body and extend outwardly from the upper face and a plurality of shock absorbing runners are also held by the puck body and extend outwardly from the lower face. Each shock absorbing runner has a surface contact portion. Means are provided for supporting the plurality of shock absorbing runners by the puck body which permits the movement of the surface contact portion of the shock absorbing runner inwardly with respect to the puck body when the runners are struck by an exterior force. The shock absorbing runners extending outwardly from the upper face may be connected to the shock absorbing runners extending outwardly from the lower face by connection means, such as a shaft, positioned in an opening in the puck body formed below the faces of the puck body. The means for outwardly biasing the surface contact portions may be an elastomeric foam piece positioned under the surface contact portion of the runner. Alternatively, springs may be formed by protrusions of the puck body contacting an under surface of the enlarged surface contact portion. It is also contemplated that guide pins can be formed on an upper surface of the surface contact portion, which extend into guide holes in the puck body to further position the shock absorbing runner in the puck body. The surface contact portion may be generally cylindrical as viewed from above or may be oblong in shape. The present invention is also for a hockey puck with a plurality of runners, whether they be shock-absorbing or not, having a plurality of depressions formed between each adjacent runner. The depressions permit the puck to slide along a playing surface at a greater angle while still riding only on the runners than if the depressions were absent. The runners reduce the chance that the softer puck body will contact the playing surface. The runners have a much lower coefficient of friction on the playing surface than does the puck body. The runners have a preferred shape which also includes a central depression which reduces the area of contact when the puck is resting on a horizontal surface.